Now Amon-Ra, king of the gods, sat upon his throne, and around him
stood the greatest of the gods and goddesses. On his right was
Osiris crowned with the great White Crown of the South Land; on his
left was Mentu, god of war, and on the head of Mentu were two great
feathers and the flashing disk of the sun. With Osiris were the twin
goddesses Isis and Nephthys, beside them stood Hathor, goddess of
love, whom the Greeks call Aphrodite; Horus, the son of Isis, with
the far-seeing eyes of the hawk; and Anubis, son of Nephthys, the
faithful guardian of Isis. With Mentu were Atmu, the god of the
sunset; Shu and his twin-sister Tefnut; Geb the earth-god, and Nut
the sky-goddess. These two are the oldest of the gods, from whom all
others proceed.
Amon-Ra, king of the gods, sat upon his throne and looked upon the
land of Egypt, and he spoke, saying, "I will create a queen to rule
over Ta-mery, I will unite the Two Lands in peace for her, and in her
hands I will place the whole world. Egypt and Syria, Nubia and Punt,
the land of the Gods, shall be under her sway." And when he had
spoken there was silence among the gods.
While he yet spoke, Thoth entered into his presence, Thoth, the
twice-great, the maker of magic, the lord of Khemennu. He listened
to the words of Amon-Ra, king of the gods, and in the silence that
followed he spoke:
"O Amon-Ra, Lord of the thrones of the Two Lands, King of the gods,
Maker of men. Behold in the Black Land in the palace of the king is
a maiden, fair and beautiful is she in all her limbs. Aahmes is her
name, and she is wife to the king of Egypt. She alone can be the
mother of the great Queen, whom thou wilt create to rule over the Two
Lands. She is in the palace of the king. Come, let us go to her."
Now the form of Thoth is the form of an ibis, that he may fly swiftly
through the air and none may know him, and as an ibis he went to the
palace of the king. But Amon-Ra took upon himself the shape of the
king of Egypt. Great was the majesty of Amon-Ra, splendid his
adornments. On his neck was the glittering collar of gold and
precious stones, on his arms were bracelets of pure gold and
electrum, and on his head were two plumes; by the plumes alone could
men know the King of the gods. In one hand he carried the sceptre of
power, in the other the emblem of life. Glorious was he as the sun
at midday, and the perfumes of the land of Punt were around him.
In the palace of the king of Egypt was queen Aahmes, and it was
night. She lay upon her couch, and sleep was upon her eyelids. Like
a jewel was she in her beauty, and the chamber in which she slept was
like the setting of the jewel; black bronze and electrum, acacia wood
and ebony, were the adornments of the palace, and her couch was in
the form of a fierce lion.
Through the two Great Doors of the palace went the gods; none saw
them, none beheld them. And with them came Neith, goddess of Saïs,
and Selk the scorpion goddess. On the head of Neith were the shield
and crossed arrows; on the head of Selk a scorpion bearing in each
claw the emblem of life.
The fragrance of the perfumes of Punt filled the chamber, and queen
Aahmes awoke and beheld Amon-Ra, King of the gods, Maker of men. In
majesty and beauty he appeared before her, and her heart was filled
with joy. He held towards her the sign of life, and in her hand he
laid the sign of life and the sceptre of power. And Neith and Selk
lifted the couch on which the queen reposed and held it high in the
air, that she might be raised above the ground, on which mortal men
live, while she spoke with the immortal Gods.
Then Amon-Ra returned and was enthroned among the Gods. And he
summoned to his presence Khnum the creator, he who fashions the
bodies of men, who dwells beside the rushing waters of the cataract.
To Khnum he gave command saying, "O Khnum, fashioner of the bodies of
men, fashion for me my daughter, she who shall be the great Queen of
Egypt. For I will give to her all life and satisfaction, all
stability and all joy of heart for ever."
Khnum the creator, the fashioner of the bodies of men, the dweller by
the cataract, made answer to Amon-Ra, "I will form for thee thy
daughter, and her form shall be more glorious than the Gods, for the
greatness of her dignity as King of the South and North."
Then he brought his potter's wheel, and took clay, and with his hands
he fashioned the body of the daughter of queen Aahmes and the body of
her _ka_. And the body of the child and the body of the _ka_ were
alike in their limbs and their faces, and none but the Gods could
know them apart. Beautiful were they with the beauty of Amon-Ra,
more glorious were they than the Gods.
Beside the potter's wheel knelt Hekt, lady of Herur, goddess of
birth. In each hand she held the sign of life, and as the wheel
turned and the bodies were fashioned, she held it towards them that
life might enter into the lifeless clay.
Then Khnum, the fashioner of the bodies of men, and Hekt the goddess
of birth, came to the palace of the king of Egypt; and with them came
Isis, the great Mother, and her sister Nephthys; Meskhent also and
Ta-urt, and Bes the protector of children. The spirits of Pé and the
spirits of Dep came with them to greet the daughter of Amon-Ra and of
queen Aahmes.
And when the child appeared, the goddesses rejoiced, and the spirits
of Pé and the spirits of Dep chanted praises to her honour, for the
daughter of Amon-Ra was to sit upon the throne of Horus of the
Living, and rule the Land of Egypt to the glory of the Gods.
Hatshepsut was she called, Chief of Noble Women, divine of Diadems,
favourite of the Goddesses, beloved of Amon-Ra. And to her the Gods
granted that she should be mistress of all lands within the circuit
of the sun, and that she should appear as king upon the throne of
Horus before the glories of the Great House. And upon her was the
favour of Amon-Ra for ever.